Heavens, what a man is there! a very horse;

That has he knows not what. Nature, what things

there are,

Moft abject in regard, and dear in ufe!

What things again moit dear in the esteem,
And poor in worth! Now fhall we fee to-morrow
An act that very chance doth throw upon him,
Ajax renown'd. O heavens, what fome men do,
While fome men leave to do!

How fome men creep in fkittish fortune's hall,
While others play the ideots in her eyes!
'How one man eats into another's pride,
While pride is feafting in his wantonnefs!
To fee thefe Grecian lords!-why, even already
They clap the lubber Ajax on the shoulder;
As if his foot were on brave Hector's breaft,
And great Troy fhrinking.

Achil. I do believe it: for they pass'd by me,
As mifers do by beggars; neither gave to me
Good word, nor look: What are my deeds forgot?
Uly. Time hath, my lord, a wallet at his back,
Wherein he puts alms for oblivion,

A great-fiz'd moniter of ingratitudes:

Thofe fcraps are good deeds paft, which are devour'd
As fast as they are made, forgot as foon

As done: Perfeverance, dear my lord,

Keeps honour bright: To have done, is to hang

Quite out of fashion, like a rufty mail

с

An alt-By an alt.

creep, &c.]-fkulk, fecrete themfelves from fortune's notice, whilft others, though they only play the ideot, keep conftantly in the way of her favours.

How one man eats, &c.]—What advantages doth the active man derive from the opportunities, which the indolence of pride neglects fafting, &c. while the flave of pride impolitickly abftains from the field. mail]-fuit of armour.

In

In monumental mockery. Take the instant way;
For honour travels in a ftreight fo narrow,
Where one but goes a breast: keep then the path:
For emulation hath a thousand fons,

That one by one purfue; If you give way,
Or hedge afide from the direct forthright,
Like to an entred tide, they all rush by,
And leave you hindmoft;

Or like a gallant horse fallen in first rank,
Lie there for pavement to the abject rear,

O'er run and trampled on: Then what they do in pre

fent,

Though lefs than yours in paft, muft o'er-top yours:
For time is like a fashionable host,

That flightly shakes his parting guest by the hand;
And with his arm out-ftretch'd, as he would fly,
Grafps-in the comer: Welcome ever smiles,

And farewell goes out fighing. O, let not virtue seek
Remuneration for the thing it was; for beauty, wit,
High birth, vigour of bone, defert in fervice,
Love, friendship, charity, are fubjects all
To envious and calumniating time.

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin,
That all, with one confent, praife new-born gawds,
Though they are made and moulded of things paft;
And fhew to duft, that is a little gilt,

More laud than ' gilt o'er-dufted.

The prefent eye praises the present object :
Then marvel not, thou great and complete man,
That all the Greeks begin to worship Ajax;
Since things in motion fooner catch the eye,
Than what not ftirs. The cry went once on thee,
And still it might, and yet it may again,

kin]-alike.

i gilt d'er-dufted.]-gold much tarnished.

If thou wouldst not entomb thyfelf alive,
And cafe thy reputation in thy tent;

Whofe glorious deeds, but in these fields of late,
*Made emulous miffions 'mongst the gods themselves,
And drave great Mars to faction.

Acbil. Of this my privacy

I have strong reafons.

Ulyff. But 'gainst your privacy

The reasons are more potent and heroical:

'Tis known, Achilles, that you are in love With one of Priam's daughters.

Achil. Ha! known?

Uly. Is that a wonder?

The providence that's in a watchful state,
Knows almost every grain of Pluto's gold;

Finds bottom in the "uncomprehensive deeps;

Keeps place with thought; and almoft, like the gods,

Does thoughts unveil in their dumb cradles.

There is a mystery (with whom relation

Durft never meddle) in the foul of state;

Which hath an operation more divine,
Than breath, or pen, can give expreffure to:
All the commerce that you have had with Troy,
As perfectly is ours, as yours, my lord;
And better would it fit Achilles much,

To throw down Hector, than Polyxena:

But it must grieve young Pyrrhus now at home,
When fame fhall in our islands found her trump;

Made emulous miffions]-Caufed the deities to challenge each other, and brought Mars himself into the Trojan files.

Plutus".

m

uncomprehenfive]-incomprehenfible. "Keeps place with thought; &c.]-There is a kind of ubiquity in the providence of a ftate, as in that of the univerfe-pace.

There is a mystery, &c.]-A fecret adminiftration of affairs, which no hiftory was ever able to difcover.

Pours,]-within our knowledge.

And

And all the Greekish girls fhall tripping fing,-
Great Hector's fifter did Achilles win;

But our great Ajax bravely beat down him.

Farewell, my lord: I as your lover speak;

The fool flides o'er the ice that you should break. [Exit.
Patr. To this effect, Achilles, have I mov'd you:
A woman impudent and mannish grown

Is not more loath'd, than an effeminate man
In time of action. I ftand condemn'd for this;
They think, my little ftomach to the war,
And your great love to me, reftrains you thus:
Sweet, roufe yourfelf; and the weak wanton Cupid
Shall from your neck unloofe his amorous fold,
And, like a dew-drop from the lion's mane,
Be fhook to air.

Achil. Shall Ajax fight with Hector?

Patr. Ay; and, perhaps, receive much honour by him. Achil. I fee, my reputation is at stake;

My fame is fhrewdly gor'd.

Patr. O, then beware;

Those wounds heal ill, that men do give themselves:
Omiffion to do what is necessary

Seals a commiffion to a blank of danger;
And danger, like an ague, fubtly taints

Even then when we fit idly in the fun.

Achil. Go call Therfites hither, fweet Patroclus; I'll fend the fool to Ajax, and defire him

To invite the Trojan lords after the combat,

To fee us here unarm'd: I have a woman's longing,
An appetite that I am fick withal,

To fee great Hector in his weeds of peace;

• Seals a commiffion to a blank of danger ;]-Enables that danger of difhonour, which could not reach us before, to lay hold on us-Expofes us to unknown dangers.

Το

To talk with him, and to behold his vifage,
Even to my full of view. A labour fav'd!

Enter Therfites.

Ther. A wonder!

Achil. What?

Ther. Ajax goes up and down the field, afking for himfelf.

Achil. How fo?

Ther. He must fight fingly to-morrow with Hector; and is fo prophetically proud of an heroical cudgelling, that he raves in saying nothing.

Achil. How can that be?

Ther. Why, he ftalks up and down like a peacock, a ftride, and a stand: ruminates, like an hoftefs, that hath no arithmetic but her brain to fet down her reckoning: bites his lip with a politic regard, as who fhould fay— there were wit in his head, an 'twould out; and fo there is; but it lies as coldly in him as fire in a flint, which will not fhew without knocking. The man's undone for ever; for if Hector break not his neck i'the combat, he'll break it himself in vain-glory. He knows not me: I faid, Good-morrow, Ajax; and he replies, Thanks, AgaWhat think you of this man, that takes me for the general? He's grown a very land-fish, languageless, a monfter. A plague of opinion! a man may wear it on both fides, like a leather jerkin.

memnon.

Achil. Thou must be my ambassador to him, Therfites. Ther. Who, I? why, he'll anfwer no body; he profeffes not answering; fpeaking is for beggars; he wears his tongue in his arms. I will put on his prefence; let Patroclus make demands to me, you fhall fee' the pageant of Ajax.

With a politic regard,]-with an arch leer. the pageant]-the figure, the reprefentation.